


How the symbol wall came to be (Or, Cerebella won’t take no for an answer but Griffin doesn’t mind, not really)

by ajacks99



Series: Urban Heroes Short Stories [3]
Category: Original Work
Genre: introverted buddies are go
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-27
Updated: 2015-06-27
Packaged: 2018-04-06 11:30:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4220040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ajacks99/pseuds/ajacks99
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Originally posted on my tumblr (ajacks99.tumblr.com), this is an attempt by me to get out of my art and writers block by writing short stories about my own characters, the Urban Heroes.</p>
<p>Griffin really, really hates reporters after battles and Cerebella knows this. Cue introverted buddies talking the day away together.</p>
<p>
  <em>Griffin grimaced as he saw the reporters gathered outside the base.</em>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	How the symbol wall came to be (Or, Cerebella won’t take no for an answer but Griffin doesn’t mind, not really)

**Author's Note:**

> For context, Griffin is aromantic/asexual and Cerebella is Panromantic/Homosexual

The battle that day had been an easy one: A group of robbers, all unpowered aside from one, whose power was more of an annoyance than a threat. With the criminals safely in police custody, Beta team headed back to base, laughing and chatting and recounting the events of the day. Griffin, one of the only ones to receive an injury (nothing major, just a scrape along one arm that would be healed in a few days), grimaced as he saw the gathered reporters hanging around outside the ‘base’.

One of the drawbacks of their ‘base’ location being known is that, in order to get to their actual base, they often had to trawl through a crowd of reporters after any battle. Most times, the reporters were considerate of their weariness after a fight however, after some of the smaller battles like today’s they often lay in wait for the heroes to return.   
Steel was the first to be cornered by a reporter, as expected considering she was the leader. Phoenix (who, while technically not a part of Beta team, had come along because of sheer boredom) and Echo hung back slightly, Echo keeping a warning arm on Phoenix’s shoulder. The fire manipulator wasn’t the most...cautious around the media, as the whole ‘accidently-setting-the-boom-on-fire’ event proved. Cerebella, the final member of Beta team, read the crowd quickly and, deducing there was no one overtly malicious, put on her winning smile and started talking to them, being careful to separate Griffin from the reporters.

After a few minutes of the intense, loud chatter of the crowd, Griffin gritted his teeth and excused himself from the crowd, ducking behind his sister as she took his place. She sent a glance his way and raised an eyebrow, but he shrugged and waved her off as he went into the base. Cerebella, ever the concerned older ‘sister’ (though not by much) prodded Echo in the shoulder and none-so-gently pushed the sound manipulator into taking her place in front of the crowd of reporters, ducking into the building and following after Griffin. 

He was heading towards the second floor, third window from the left. It was the window that always got the best view of the outside and the best sunshine streaming in. The introverted bird sibling was always one to be found relaxing in that specific spot should the need arise, and the two of them had spent long days chatting and talking, or even just in companionable silence with each other.

The window had a large windowsill, paint chipping but warmed due to the sunlight. Griffin leant his back against the frame and bent his legs at the knees, pulling his feet upwards to rest against the opposite wall. Cerebella moved into his field of vision and tapped his shoulder, raising an eyebrow in concern.  
Griffin smiled slightly at his friend, though his lips barely twitched upwards before they fell again and he turned his head back to the window. The psychic sighed and then sat down opposite Griffin, gently nudging his feet aside to give her more room. “You wanna talk about it? Or just chill for a while?”  
He shrugged. “Just...chill for a while. It was getting a bit...” he trailed off, but she nodded in understanding. It didn’t take an empath to understand that the crowds of reporters outside, coupled with the stress from the day, were beginning to take a toll on the introverted Griffin. He shuffled further against the window and brought his hands up around his arms, out of comfort more than awkwardness around Cerebella.

The psychic blinked slowly and then looked out the window along with her friend, studying the crowds below. Thankfully, the glass was one way, so the reporters couldn’t see inside the building. Steel, Paladin (when the head of security had arrived, no one knew), Phoenix and Echo were working crowd control, not so subtly trying to push the crowds back away from the main building. Eventually, they would succeed like they did every day after a battle, but until then the loud crowd would mill around the Urban Heroes base like a bad smell. 

Griffin shifted in place and Cerebella glanced at her friend, noticing that he seemed more relaxed than when she had first appeared. “Want me to talk about anything?”  
“I...yeah sure...how about art for today?”  
“Sure! So I was thinking you know that plain wall in the corridor...”

Words flowed like a river or a song from Cerebella’s mouth, swirling around the room and cocooning the two friends in their own little bubble of comfort. She talked about her plans for a large mural on the wall, before explaining her reservations about adding any new members to it later on due to space issues and that of her rapidly changing art style. Eventually, Griffin felt himself calming as they talked about art and other topics that had little to do with the crowds outside.

Finally, when the sun was well below the horizon and the stars were out in force, the two broke off their talk at a jaw-cracking yawn from Cerebella. The psychic blinked in surprise, prompting a small chuckle from her companion as they both slid off the windowsill. “So, are we telling Steel about this?” Cerebella questioned. Griffin raised an eyebrow and she elaborated gleefully. “About the symbol wall! We can have everyone submit a symbol or something and I or some of the other artists can have a day where we draw or paint them and frame them on that plain wall in the corridor!”  
“Yeah...sure, just don’t say anything about the...other stuff...”  
“What other stuff?”  
“Exactly,” Griffin smiled and Cerebella grinned wildly before steering him towards the medbay. At his look of confusion, she motioned to the graze on his arm. “You need to at least get some antiseptic on there or Skye’ll be after your blood,”  
“I’m fine!”  
“I’m not taking no for an answer!”

The two friends paused for a moment and then burst out laughing, the sound bouncing off the walls but, thankfully, not waking up any of the other heroes in the base.

Another pause.

“I’m serious, you know,”  
“Damnit,”


End file.
